Report from the CEC Committee

BCA-USA MIRROR REPORT FROM THE CEC COMMITTEE

Ba Gwankudvalla, Nubea Lima

CEC Chairperson

The upcoming convention in May 2022 will be the first in-person meeting of the general assembly since 2019 and it will be highlighted by BCA-USA general elections. The Constitution and Electoral Committee (CEC) of BCA-USA is the committee responsible to conduct the elections. The CEC also serves as a reference and consultant for constitutional inquiries. The committee will periodically solicit input from the membership, review them and propose amendments to the constitution and Bylaws as required.

The CEC developed a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) document that details the work of the committee and provides a cadence of CEC meetings. The first pass document was accepted by the Board of Directors (BOD) and the National Executive Committee (NEC). The plan is for the document to be returned to the CEC and others as required for cleanup and editing/ clarification of any conflicts based on feedback received.

To prepare transparent and fair elections that comply with the constitution of BCA-USA, the CEC must undertake much legwork in advance of May 2022. The following are some of the activities that the CEC has been engaged in: • The CEC identified the positions to be contested and sent out a call for nominations that included a deadline for receipt of nominations. The CEC extended the deadline to allow ample time for people to respond. • The CEC determined the minimum qualifications required for each position in accordance with the constitution and evaluated the information submitted by the candidates.

The CEC evaluated all responses received by April 19, 2022, when the spreadsheet of candidates was compiled. • The CEC notified the candidates of their eligibility status to stand for elections after completing the vetting process. The CEC will publish a complete list of eligible candidates

for all contested positions along with a brief bio of each candidate based on the information received, prior to the elections date. • The CEC’s intent of vetting candidates in advance of the convention, as corroborated by the BCA-USA’s NEC is to limit floor nominations at the convention to only positions that do not have a vetted candidate (i.e., vacant positions). The CEC will have to vet these limited cases at the convention. The vetting process is an important step that requires diligent work to gather information such as membership records, convention attendance records, leadership Summit attendance records, and BCA-USA committee and local chapter service records. • The CEC wants to encourage candidates to carefully contemplate the decision to stand for

BCA-USA elected positions rather than making impulsive decisions on the convention floor about such important matters. The Association has grown beyond a small family reunion when that may have been acceptable. In the same vein, the CEC will require self-nominations by candidates for “vacant” positions, instead of having people nominate others and possibly coercing people into positions when they may not be ready to hold office. • The CEC seeks to streamline the voting process by preparing a single ballot sheet with names of the candidates for all contested positions.

Electors will make their choices and turn in the single ballot sheet in the same way as is done in the US presidential elections. Prior to elections, candidates for the same position will be required to answer the same question in an alternating manner. The CEC will carefully explain and clarify the voting procedure as required prior to handing out the ballots.

The CEC looks forward to conducting free and fair elections in May 2022. Please note that eligibility to cast votes in the May 2022 elections is BCA-USA membership for the last two consecutive years.

Dear Members, List of Vetted Candidates

Pursuant to the BOD’s published decision on the question of floor nominations at the convention, the CEC hereby presents the following list of candidates that have been vetted to run for office in the May 2022 elections (See the list attached). The vetting of these candidates was completed on April 25, 2022, and the candidates were notified on April 26, 2022, accordingly. The list was scheduled to be presented to the general membership last week, but this was delayed due to the comments/ questions that arose last week. As noted by the President, this issue was elevated to the BOD and the BOD rendered a decision in alignment with the previous decision by the NEC.

The list shows three positions with no vetted candidates. Per the BOD decision, floor nominations are to be taken only for these “vacant” positions and those candidates are to be vetted by the CEC on the spot. The positions are Comptroller, Publicity Secretary, and the Auditor No. 3 position.

Criteria for Vetting Candidates

This issue was discussed in the previous communique from the CEC. The criteria for vetting the various positions come directly from the BCA-USA Constitution. They are specific and quantifiable. The vetting process is therefore not subjective. For example, the requirements for President and Vice President are: 1. Must have served in the NEC and been a member in good standing for at least five

Position Name Biography

Board of Directors (BOD)

1 Kaba, Nubia Chair of the BCA-USA Health Committee since 2012 Member of the Constitution and Elections Committee since 2012 Member of other BCA-USA committees

2 Fokumlah, Christopher Pega

Member of BCA-USA since 1990 Chair of two BCA-USA conventions; main contact for the 1990, 2004, 2012 and 2019 conventions in MN. Member of FRC

3 Lima, Nubea Member of BCA-USA since 1990 Chair of five different BCA-USA committees Member of committees to develop the original Bylaws of BCA-USA, update the Constitution (2004) and the Bylaws (2022) President of the BCA-USA Atlanta (Southeastern Chapter) for 8 years Chair of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE-IAS), Atlanta Chapter

4 Tita, Moses Current member of the Board of Directors BCA-USA President 2004-2008 BCA-USA Vice President 2000-2004 Chair of three different BCA-USA committees

5 Fogam, Eric Currently a member of the BCA-USA Board of Directors Former Chair of the BOD

6 Vanyounga, Winifred Former Vice President of BCA-USA Former President of the Southeastern Chapter, Former Chair of multiple committees, including the Projects Committee

7 Titajani, Divine Member of BCA-USA for the past 22 years Member of Cultural Committee Member and other BCA-USA Committees President of Advocate Homecare Inc. and Board Member of Prince Jani LLC

President Fomukong, Joe Currently BCA-USA Vice President Former BCA-USA Secretary 2016-2018 Auditor 2014-2016; President, BCA-USA Southern Texas Chapter 2010-2016 Member of multiple committees.

National Executive Office (NEO)

Vice President Ngafor, Valeria Nahjella Awah

BCA-USA member since 2003 Currently BCA-USA Secretary General (Since 2018) Served at all Leadership levels in the BCA-USA Southern Texas Chapter, including President (2015-2018) Served in multiple BCA-USA committees

Secretary General Gwaabe, Godlove Vice President - OK Chapter Vice Chair - BCA-USA Cultural Committee BCA-USA Projects Committee Chair

Treasurer Takam, Victorine L. Current BCA-USA Treasurer

Comptroller

Publicity Secretary

Protocal Officer Fossung-Price, Dilys Treasurer of BCA-USA Eastern Chapter

Office of Auditors

1 Fokwang, Lilian N. Chair of two BCA-USA committees Member of three other BCA-USA committees Local Chapter Coordinating Secretary

2 Pefok, Banyuga Member of the Board of Directors 2016-present BCA-USA Treasurer 2008-2012 BCA-USA Comptroller 2004-2008 Chaired several BCA-USA committees

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years prior to the election year. 2. Must have attended the three National Conventions prior to the election year and three out of five Leadership

Summits prior to the election year.

Complete List of Applications Received

Considering that skepticism was expressed by certain members about the dates that some of the

Applications Received by the CEC for Vetting of Candidates for BCA-USA Elections, May 2022 Email Address Name of Candidate Date Received Position Desired Disposition of CEC

Fomukong@hotmail.com Joe Fomukong 23-Mar-22 President Reviewed and Approved Lndangam@hotmail.com Lilian N. Fokwang 25-Mar-22 Auditor Reviewed and Approved Nikevic29@gmail.com Victorine Takam 28-Mar-22 Treasurer Reviewed and Approved Nubiakaba@netscape.net Nubia Kaba 28-Mar-22 BOD Reviewed and Approved Cfokumlah@hotmail.com Chris Fokumlah 28-Mar-22 BOD Reviewed and Approved Bpefok@yahoo.com Banyuga Pefok 28-Mar-22 Auditor Reviewed and Approved Kahbert71@gmail.com Valeria N. Awah Ngafor 29-Mar-22 Vice President Reviewed and Approved N_lima2003@yahoo.com Nubea Lima 29-Mar-22 BOD Reviewed and Approved mntita@yahoo.com Moses Tita 30-Mar-22 BOD Reviewed and Approved Gwaabegodlove@gmail.com Godlove Gwaabe 7-Apr-22 Secretary General Reviewed and Approved Cmoore1102@hotmail.com Cindi Moore 11-Apr-22 Publicity Secretary Reviewed and Denied Madamdibrahim6@gmail.com Dilys Fossung-Price 12-Apr-22 Chief Whip Reviewed and Approved Ericfogam@aol.com Eric Fogam 18-Apr-22 BOD Reviewed and Approved Wvanyounga@gmail.com Winifred Nukuna 18-Apr-22 BOD Reviewed and Approved Batitajani@yahoo.com Titajani 19-Apr-22 BOD Reviewed and Approved Mkayeba@gmail.com Michael Njambed 20-Apr-22 Vice President Not Reviewed Springoflifehealth@gmail.com Justine Njafuh 23-Apr-22 BOD Not Reviewed Charlydoh2005@yahoo.com Charly Doh 24-Apr-22 Auditor Not Reviewed Colinsdoh@gmail.com Colins Doh 26-Apr-22 President Not Reviewed I.Fokum@yahoo.com Isidore G. Fokum 29-Apr-22 Comptroller Not Reviewed Yotahba@yahoo.com Yotah Koulagna 4-May-22 Publicity Secretary Not Reviewed

late applications were received, the CEC is publishing the entire list of applications showing the date the emails were received. This raw data includes the late applications not reviewed by the CEC. This spreadsheet is being published for full transparency.

Conflict of Interest

The CEC has described how it managed any possible conflicts of interest within the committee in the vetting process. The CEC further states that in May during the elections, any CEC member who is running for office will be required to recuse himself from conducting the elections. It should be noted that this is not the first time that BCA-USA committees have had to come up with strategies to manage possible conflicts of interest. Many previous Award Committees, for example have included candidates who were nominated for an award. They were not automatically and entirely kicked out of the committee. They recused themselves when their case was being discussed and voted upon.

It should also be noted that the CEC is not the body that elects the candidates. The CEC vets the candidates per specific quantifiable criteria from the Constitution. Ultimately, the candidates are voted at the General Assembly meeting.

If in the vetting process a candidate’s application is rejected unduly, the candidate can provide evidence to the CEC of any missed information and the CEC will review it.

Case of an Application Allegedly Submitted in March

It came to the CEC’s attention this morning that a member alleges to have applied on March 23, 2022, for position of Secretary General. The CEC has checked the in-box thoroughly and have not found the alleged email from this member. It should also be noted that the CEC never received an inquiry from this member about his alleged application. However, the CEC will contact the member directly to further investigate the matter.

We will not delay the release of the list at this time. If it turns out after the investigation that the claim is legitimate, the candidate will be vetted accordingly. Please note that it is not until April 7, 2022, that the CEC received the first application for the position of Secretary General.

Sincerely, Ba Gwankudvalla, Nubea Lima CEC Chair